Fourth bunch sprint in China, same outcome for Paul Magnier and the Wolfpack.
Paul Magnier never ceases to amaze. The 21-year-old took his fourth consecutive victory of the week after a demonstration of raw power in the closing meters of the Tour of Guangxi, where this time he produced a fantastic seated sprint to take the spoils in Jinchengjiang. For Magnier, this was the 18th win of a fantastic season, a number only two other riders reached for the Wolfpack in the team’s 23-year history: Tom Boonen in 2004 and 2006, and Mark Cavendish in 2013.
Friday’s stage was a complicated one, containing four classified climbs – some with pretty hard gradients – and a small hill just before the final ten kilometers of the race, but Soudal Quick-Step was again on duty, pacing in the peloton behind the six-man breakaway and neutralizing all the attacks that came in the closing part of the day. Riding under the flamme rouge, Paul still had Dries Van Gestel for company, and the experienced Belgian provided another excellent lead-out for the Frenchman, who outpowered his opponents for our squad’s seventh consecutive victory in just three days.
It was another superb display of dominance from Paul, who picked up ten bonus seconds that helped him increase his lead in the general classification ahead of the penultimate stage, the tough climb to the Nongla Scenic Spot.